Aidan Charron | Curb your plastic consumption

This year, EARTHDAY.ORG set the theme for Earth Day as ‘Planet vs. Plastics’. In case you were wondering why we picked that specific theme, here’s the reason: Plastic pollutes our planet, our wildlife, all of us, and plastic production also produces greenhouse gases (GHGs) that contribute to climate change.

Right now, the manufacture of plastics accounts for four per cent of GHG emissions but, if we continue on our present plastic-producing trajectory, this could triple by the year 2060.

What most people do not realise is that plastics are made from oil and a toxic mix of chemicals, making it therefore an increasingly important part of the fossil fuel industry. Most plastics are never recycled and a lot of it cannot be recycled, but instead contributes to an epic waste crisis that unfairly impacts developing and island nations.

Now, there’s growing evidence we are inhaling and ingesting tiny particles of plastics, known as microplastics, as well as toxic chemicals leaching out of them.

As you probably realise, humans are not designed to ingest plastics, so it’s not surprising that there are serious human health risks associated with this unrequested plastic diet. Research suggests the health implications presented by microplastics and their additive chemicals are particularly relevant to babies, both before and after birth. In one recent study, 100 per cent of placentas tested had microplastics inside them.

RISKS INFANTS FACE

Our own report, Babies vs Plastics, highlighted the risk infants face especially. But it’s not just babies who are impacted by plastics; all of us are, with some research finding associations between microplastics and specific cancers, infertility, miscarriages, Alzheimer’s, and a recent study of heart patients undergoing plaque removal surgery found polyethylene microplastics in nearly 60 per cent of them, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

It’s not just humans that are impacted; plastic harms our pets too! When our pets chew on their plastic toys, chemicals like phthalates and BPA in the toys leach into our pets’ gums, skin, and stomachs. Plastics are also found in pet beds, crates, grooming products, and cat litter, and none of these are regulated by the FDA. Even their food is affected: cat and dog food cans are coated with BPA or PVC-based plastic. Human food waste used in animal feed may still be in plastic packaging, and ear tags on carcass heads can end up in pet food.

These chemicals are harmful to pets’ health and linked to issues like potential infertility, liver and kidney damage, cancers, and even embryo development in dogs.

As we are sharing the same space with our pets, by limiting their consumption of microplastics, we limit ours and vice versa.

MITIGATE PLASTICS INTAKE

We will likely never be able to completely limit ingesting and inhaling plastics but here are some tips to help mitigate your daily plastics intake:

1. Avoid eating too much red meat. There’s growing evidence red meat contains plastic particles and shellfish consume microplastics, which then remain in their digestive tracts! Aim, to make wise protein choices!

2. Try to sweep or vacuum as much as possible in your home, because household dust is full of plastic fibres and particles.

3. We all know single-use plastic water bottles are bad for the environment but now there’s new evidence that the water in single-use plastic bottles can contain up to 240 000 nano particles of plastic per bottle too.

4. Try to avoid microwaving your food in plastic containers, because the heat releases plastic chemicals, like BPA, into your food.

5. Use as few toiletries as possible, because they often contain plastic chemicals like phthalates. Plus, the plastic packaging used in the beauty and personal-care market creates vast amounts of plastic pollution. In 2018, 7.9 billion rigid units of plastic packaging were created in the US alone! Most of it ultimately ends up in landfills.

6. Some studies have found leafy vegetables contain less microplastics than root vegetables, so opt to include them in your recipes.

7. Finally, avoid wearing polyester. It’s a textile made of plastic, which sheds microplastic fibres that you will end up breathing in.

8. Limit your baby’s and fur-babies’ exposure to plastics by choosing non-plastic toys, beds, and clothes such as hemp and organic cotton.

The one key thing all of us can do to ensure we all cut back on our plastic consumption is to call for governments around the world negotiating on the UN Global Plastic Treaty to drastically limit plastic production by 60 per cent by 2040.

We were heartened to see the US government announce that they are supportive, finally, of plastic production caps. That is a shift in their position but it’s no time to be complacent. We need to keep the pressure on world governments to stand up to the plastic industry.

Aidan Charron, is former director of End Plastic Initiatives, and associate director, Global, Earth Day at EARTHDAY.ORG. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com